Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Jasneet W. Sharma, Director of Sustainability Department
Subject: Resolution Amending Acceptance of a Grant Awarded to the County for the Pescadero Creek Watershed Roads Sediment Reduction Project from the California State Water Resources Control Board
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution to satisfy requirements authorizing the Director of the Sustainability Department, or designee, to execute the $1,000,000 grant from the California State Water Resources Control Board to fund the Pescadero Creek Watershed Roads Sediment Reduction Project, and any amendments, and to act on behalf of the County in administering the grant, including approval and submittal of invoices and reimbursement requests.
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BACKGROUND:
The County was awarded grant funding from the State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board). As a condition of accepting and administering the grant, the Water Board requires adoption of a resolution by the grantee's governing body accepting the grant. The Board adopted such a resolution on December 9, 2025 (Resolution No. 081584). However, upon the Water Board's review of Resolution No. 081584, the Water Board determined that a minor change in the resolution language is necessary in order to fully comply with its program requirements. As a result, Resolution No. 081584 cannot be accepted for grant administration purposes in its current form.
This new resolution is identical to Resolution No. 081584 except that it incorporates the additional language requested by the Water Board, which authorizes the Director of the Sustainability Department, or designee, to execute the funding agreement and any amendments, and to act on behalf of the County in administering the grant, including approval and submittal of invoices and reimbursement requests.
This new resolution is therefore required to incorporate the necessary authorizations and to align with Water Board requirements. Approval of this resolution will ensure compliance with Water Board requirements and avoid delays in grant implementation.
The California State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) Nonpoint Source Grant Program (NPS) is a competitive grant program funded by the federal Clean Water Act Section 319(h) Grant Program to states to implement nonpoint source control activities, with focus on impaired water bodies. Nonpoint source pollution is pollution that is discharged over larger areas instead of from one source. The County has been awarded an NPS grant for culvert repair and road stabilization in the Pescadero Creek watershed in the amount of $1,000,000, which requires a 25 percent funding match of $921,247 from the County for the total project budget of $4,953,462 to be spent within three years of the award.
Project completion supports the County’s Stormwater Program compliance efforts, including sediment reduction in an impaired watershed, and improved water quality reported towards the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board Municipal Regional Stormwater National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit requirement of reducing 20 percent of the total estimated cubic yards of potential sediment erosion by 2027. This grant will leverage existing County investments ensuring clean local waterways and regulatory compliance.
DISCUSSION:
The Sustainability Department, the Department of Public Works (DPW), and Parks Department (Parks) will collaborate to repair and upgrade four stream crossings on tributaries to Pescadero Creek, including Bloomquist Creek, Peterson Creek, Schenley Creek, and Rhododendron Creek, to reduce chronic and episodic sediment delivery in accordance with the Pescadero-Butano Watershed Sediment Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) plan.
The project involves removing and replacing deteriorated or undersized culverts at four creek crossings along Wurr Road (DPW maintained) and Old Haul Road (Parks maintained) with larger culverts designed to handle 100-year flood flows. Additional work includes removing unstable, eroding fill, upgrading road stability, and improving channel capacity through grading and reconstruction.
This Project builds upon previous efforts by the County to inventory sediment delivery at all creek crossings in the watershed and is strategically placed in high priority areas. As such, this work will provide significant credit towards meeting state regulated milestones by reducing thousands of cubic yards of sediment over a 20-year period in the Pescadero Creek watershed.
The County Attorney’s Office has reviewed and approved the agreement and resolutions as to form.
COMMUNITY IMPACT:
Stormwater pollution prevention is critical in reducing pollutants of concern and protecting water quality for all County residents.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no new Net County Cost associated with this project.